Farmer Writes: sowing a pleasure in a dusty March

March dust, according to the proverb, is worth a pound an ounce or a king’s ransom. And there’s certainly been lots of dust this March which has made sowing a pleasure.

However, the bright drying days have led to nighttime frosts and little growth. But, on balance, this has served the forward winter crops well by holding them back from rapid spring stem extension.

It does make spraying difficult however, as diurnal days from a daytime 14°C, falling back to zero at night are not ideal for chemical uptake and as such are stressful to crops. While this weather was very welcome, it could be overdone and a rise in temperatures would be nice.

The crops look good from the all-seeing driver’s seat in the Bateman cab

With that said, the winter barley has had both its plant growth regulator sprays and the first for September-sown wheat. The crops look good from the all-seeing driver’s seat in the Bateman cab. The mid-February compound fertiliser worked very nicely and was timely.

Autumn weed control has been good after a dry winter, but I did see volunteer oats in winter barley and wheat which have now been taken out with fenoxaprop.

The winter oats have been well checked by windchill and are not happy. Will they be OK? Probably, but they need to get going shortly and there may be some head damage. But all told, we’re in a good place on the farm with the seed drill back in the shed by St Patrick’s Day and the generally pleasant heady days of just spreading and spraying lie ahead.

For the two American astronauts who were stuck up in the satellite, it was the only thing they could see on planet Earth from outer space!

And I’ve more good news to tell you. The Hilux is gone, and I was delighted to see the back of it in Colton Ford in Tullamore, Co Offaly. I had taken out a demonstrator Ford Ranger Wildtrak, which was a lovely drive, but the colour is a bit suspect.

You might think it’s ESB yellow, but it’s not. Or JCB yellow, but it’s not. It’s cyber orange. Yes, cyber orange.

For the two American astronauts who were stuck up in the satellite, it was the only thing they could see on planet Earth from outer space!

I arrived home and Mrs P was in the garden. “You can’t be serious,” she says, ramping up a gear with the hoe. I tried to convince her that it was a type of harvest yellow (like a 1980s Marshall tractor) and could only really be truly appreciated with time. Anyhow, I mansplained to Mrs P, it was a demonstrator and no, I hadn’t bought it.

Money talks

That aside, I loved the Wildtrak. And money talks. Probably because no one in Offaly would be seen dead or alive in the cyber orange Wildtrak, I got a great deal on it.

It would be madness to pay thousands more for a blue or red one or, in fact, to misquote Henry Ford, any damn colour I like except cyber orange.

Dad last bought a Ford tractor from what was then RF Colton Ltd in 1976 and we still have it. So, it was high time that I bought another Ford from them, albeit 49 years later.

I’ve told you before that our Ford 7600 was useless to pull, whether it was a chick for a 16-year lad (me) or a roller through a mucky gap. The Del Morino 6ft mower is the height of it today, recommended horsepower, 35hp.

I’d be pretty sure if I hitched a roller up to the Wildtrak it’d make a much better job of pulling it than the Ford 7600. And 400 times quieter. Though, let’s be honest, the cyber orange Wildtrak wouldn’t have pulled Mrs P. It was the 1976 Tahiti blue Triumph TR7 that did that. Wish I still had it.

At least I still have Mrs P.